A former senior executive at the Co-op has been awarded more than £100,000 after an employment tribunal found she was paid less than male colleagues despite working at the same level.
Samantha Walker received £101,373 in compensation after her claims of equal pay, sex discrimination and unfair dismissal were upheld, bringing to a close a case that has taken nearly a decade to resolve.
The case arose after Walker raised concerns internally about pay differences at executive level during her time at the Co-op.
Pay decisions and role evaluation questioned
Walker joined the organisation in 2013 as director of group HR strategic projects on a salary of £190,000 and received a bonus after being rated “outstanding”.
In 2014, she was promoted following the departure of a colleague to take on a senior group HR role, initially expected to carry a salary of £500,000. It was later reduced to £425,000, during restructuring discussions, with the company saying it reflected “varying levels of skill and experience within the executive team” and that the higher figure “seemed excessive”.
An independent assessment of executive roles carried out by now-defunct consultancy firm Hay Group in January 2015 found that Walker’s role was as high as or higher than those held by male colleagues.
Walker said she believed she was effectively performing the role of chief people officer and sought to raise this at an end-of-year meeting in December 2015 with chief operating officer Richard Pennycook.
She also said she was planning changes in her personal life and wanted a role that would allow time off during school holidays, raising the possibility of working part-time on the same pay as other executives so she could be “recognised and valued alongside my male peers”.
Performance ratings and internal process challenged
In a feedback form in November 2015, Pennycook scored Walker 100 percent on nine of 22 measures and rated her higher than she rated herself on 11.
But in February 2016 he sent executive summaries to the group chairman in which Walker was graded as “partially achieving”, the second lowest available rating. Two male colleagues received the same grade.
He described it as an “overall disappointing year for Sam, reflected in the grading”.
Walker argued that the process was “unfair, unreasonable and disregarded her contractual entitlements” and said the situation escalated after she raised concerns about equal pay.
Pennycook said he “categorically confirmed” that she had not raised any equal pay or gender pay gap concerns with him at executive level.
Dismissal and tribunal outcome
In April 2016, Walker was given 12 months’ notice to terminate her employment and did not return to work during that period. The company later conceded that her dismissal was procedurally unfair.
She brought claims that were upheld in 2018 by an employment tribunal in Manchester, although the tribunal did not find that her dismissal was caused by her complaints about equal pay or by her sex.
The final compensation award has only now been determined, with £101,373 granted following the conclusion of the case.
Other claims, including disability discrimination and allegations that she had made protected disclosures, were dismissed.
A Co-op spokesman said: “This case relates to events from almost a decade ago and has now concluded. The tribunal found that Ms Walker was not dismissed because of complaints about equal pay or because of her sex.
“While the tribunal identified a flaw in a historic performance appraisal process, it also found that the dismissal itself was substantively fair.”
The case places attention on how employers assess roles, set pay and apply performance ratings at senior level, particularly where independent evaluations indicate roles are comparable.
William Furney is a Managing Editor at Black and White Trading Ltd based in Kingston upon Hull, UK. He is a prolific author and contributor at Workplace Wellbeing Professional, with over 127 published posts covering HR, employee engagement, and workplace wellbeing topics. His writing focuses on contemporary employment issues including pension schemes, employee health, financial struggles affecting workers, and broader workplace trends.
- William Furney
- William Furney
- William Furney
- William Furney
